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Shia LaBeouf's downward spiral

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He lit up a cigarette, disrupted a play, police say; he was staggering, theatergoers say

They say they thought he was putting on an act, studying for a new role

LaBeouf has made an art of apologizing in an acting piece he calls #IAMSORRY

Actor Shia LaBeouf has literally made an art of apologizing for a chain of ill deeds. He added a link to that chain late Thursday when, police said, he lit up a cigarette in a Broadway theater.

The "Transformers" actor was led away in handcuffs from a showing of "Cabaret" at a theater at New York's Studio 54. He was drunk and had been disruptive in the theater, police said.

On Friday, a tired-looking LaBeouf was silent as he left a Manhattan courtroom after being released on his own recognizance. Represented by a legal aid lawyer during his brief court appearance, the actor was formally charged with criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and harassment.

In court, a prosecutor voiced concern about releasing LaBeouf without bail, but the defense lawyer noted the media buzz that his failure to appear for his July 24 court day would generate. The actor was surrounded by reporters and photographers for several blocks after leaving court.

LaBeouf had been sitting in the audience at Studio 54, CNN affiliate WABC reported, when he allegedly disrupted the show during the first act.A criminal complaint said he allegedly yelled "loudly at the actors onstage" and refused to leave.

As a police officer escorted the actor out of the theater, LeBeouf allegedly said, " "F--- you. This is f---ing bull---. Do you know my life? Do you know who the f--- I am? Do you know who I am," the complaint said.

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf 22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – Over the past year, Shia LaBeouf's behavior has gone from precocious and unpredictable to downright bizarre. As LaBeouf gets back on his feet with his latest film, "Fury," take a look at how the star went from a kid actor to a man who briefly preferred to wear a paper bag over his head.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – After a string of commercials, TV and movie appearances, LaBeouf found fame at 14 as the star of Disney's "Even Stevens." The comedy ran from 2000 to 2003 and earned the young actor an Emmy for outstanding performer in a children's series.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – As "Even Stevens" wrapped up, LaBeouf landed another breakout role, this time in film. He starred in 2003's "Holes," which was adapted from Louis Sachar's novel.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – "Holes" wasn't the only movie LaBeouf worked on that year. He also appeared in "Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd," "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle " and "The Battle of Shaker Heights." For the latter movie's premiere in August 2003, the then 17-year-old actor brought his mom as his date.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – As his fame grew, LaBeouf became part of the parade of kid stars who were becoming household names, like Amanda Bynes and Raven Symone. The trio appeared on MTV's "Total Request Live" in 2005.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – In 2007, Shia LaBeouf was hand-picked by Steven Spielberg -- who eventually became a mentor for the up-and-coming actor -- to star in the thriller "Disturbia." The release helped establish LaBeouf as a major talent in Hollywood as the movie scored a surprise No. 1 at the box office.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – With one top movie already under his belt, LaBeouf went on to score another No. 1 blockbuster with 2007's "Transformers." He starred in the movie as Sam Witwicky, a character he reprised in two more films before deciding to quit the franchise.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – In November 2007, LaBeouf earned that other Hollywood rite of passage: his very first mugshot. The then-21-year-old actor was arrested for trespassing in a Chicago drugstore. According to People magazine, a security guard at the store repeatedly asked LaBeouf to leave because he appeared intoxicated, and when the actor refused, the security guard called the cops.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – LaBeouf was described as Spielberg's protege, so it wasn't surprising to see the actor turn up in the famed filmmaker's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" in 2008. The only problem? The movie didn't go over so well, and LaBeouf made waves bad-mouthing it two years later, saying that he and his colleagues had "dropped the ball."

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – Despite earning a reputation as Hollywood's newest troublemaker, LaBeouf was still as popular as ever in 2008. That year, he was at work on a second "Transformers" movie and was starring in another action film, "Eagle Eye." In May, he was brought back to "Saturday Night Live" to host for a second time; that appearance was just two months before he was arrested at the scene of a car accident on suspicion of DUI. The wreck left LaBeouf with a nasty hand injury.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – In 2010, LaBeouf tried to shake off some of his action star rep and bad boy behavior. He signed up for Oliver Stone's "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps," started studying the stock market and dated his squeaky clean "Wall Street" co-star, Oscar nominee Carey Mulligan. "I cleared my life to make this movie," he told GQ magazine that year. "My past life did not follow me to New York. I created a whole new existence."

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf22 photos

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – LaBeouf's transformation included saying goodbye to the "Transformers" series in 2011. The actor filmed the third installment, "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" -- which replaced his former co-star Megan Fox with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley -- and then announced he'd washed his hands of Michael Bay's chain of blockbusters. "I don't have anything new to contribute," he said that year.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – Leaving summer popcorn films firmly in his past, LaBeouf focused on creating a career in indie filmmaking. In 2012, as he starred in "Lawless," he said that "there's no room for being a visionary in the studio system. It literally cannot exist. ... I'm done."

The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – Interestingly, the more adventuresome LaBeouf became with his art, the more often we saw him naked. The actor happily went full-frontal in a Sigur Ros music video in 2012, and then announced that he planned on getting naked again in Lars von Trier's explicitly erotic drama, "Nymphomaniac." LaBeouf has said -- perhaps jokingly -- that he sent in videotapes of himself having sex with his girlfriend to prove he could handle the role's unsimulated sex scenes.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – With that level of commitment to his work, it's not surprising that LaBeouf wanted to drink moonshine for "Lawless" or drop acid for 2013's "Charlie Countryman." "There's a way to do an acid trip like 'Harold & Kumar,' and there's a way to be on acid," the then-26-year-old actor told USA Today. "What I know of acting, Sean Penn actually strapped in to that (electric) chair in 'Dead Man Walking.' These are the guys that I look up to."

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – In 2013, LaBeouf was poised to enter the world of theater with a Broadway production of "Orphans" that co-starred Alec Baldwin. Yet before he could make his debut on the Great White Way, the actor dropped out of the project over "creative differences" -- and then for reasons known only to him, decided to publicly share private correspondence about behind-the-scenes tension. He and Baldwin apparently had conflict "as men. Not as artists, but as men," LaBeouf later said.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – In December 2013, LaBeouf was accused of plagiarizing the work of author Daniel Clowes for a short film. At first, LaBeouf admitted that he failed to give Clowes proper credit and said he was sorry. But then, as he continued to apologize, observers noticed that he was plagiarizing his apologies. In January 2014 LaBeouf literally aimed higher with his tour of regret and decided to skywrite "I am sorry Daniel Clowes" across the skies of Los Angeles.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – After his skywriting effort, LaBeouf's actions grew increasingly strange. He said he was retiring from public life in early January, and then began tweeting "I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE" daily for weeks. All of that fueled rumors that he was actually in the middle of a performance art piece, and one could only hope that's what caused his bizarre appearance at the Berlin Film Festival. On February 9, he abruptly walked out of a press conference for his film "Nymphomaniac: Volume I" after randomly answering a question with a quote from a French soccer star.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – Although LaBeouf didn't stay for "Nymphomaniac's" media event, he did show up for the premiere wearing one eye-catching accessory: a paper bag over his head bearing his favorite phrase, "I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE," scrawled in black marker.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – In June, LaBeouf was charged with harassment, disorderly conduct and criminal trespass following an outburst at a Broadway venue. The charges were settled on the grounds that LaBeouf continue to seek treatment for alcohol addiction.

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The strange evolution of Shia LaBeouf – LaBeouf leaves criminal court in New York on July 24, 2014.

He was also dressed for the role during Friday's outburst, the two theatergoers said. He staggered around in a torn shirt with the cigarette and was mixing with the crowd. He walked up to a woman at the theater bar, fed her a strawberry by hand and tipped the bartender, they said.

LaBeouf rose to fame at age 14 as the star of the Disney series "Even Stevens." He has stayed busy with regular movie and TV roles since the late 1980s, including starring in three "Transformers" films. Of late, he has played in films with a more literary appeal, such as "Nymphomaniac" and "The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman."